Though he was born in Winchester, New Hampshire, Maurice was raised in Brattleboro, Vermont, by his parents Richard Cobb and Lelia Lampson Cobb. His lifelong love of rural living began as he worked every summer on his grandfather’s farm: making hay, hitching up the horses to go to town, and bringing the cows home in the afternoon. Cold water in a tin cup was always Maurice’s favorite drink.
After high school, he left for the city to go to seminary at Crane Theological School, part of Tufts University. He was ordained into the Universalist ministry at the White Street Universalist Church in East Boston, Massachusetts, in 1943. His first churches were in the Clinton Circuit; Hopewell, Clinton and Red Hill, North Carolina.
Following that, Maurice studied philosophy at Chapel Hill, North Carolina, while he ministered to Derby Line, Vermont. He received a master of arts in philosophy from the University of North Carolina in 1953. Maurice was thinking of moving into an academic position, but Sputnik’s launch meant a transfer of national attention from the humanities to the technical sciences, and funding for philosophy students dried up. He continued his ministry in Ohio with churches in Attica and Bellville. Dolgeville and Salisbury Center, New York, were his next churches from 1957 to 1964.
The move to Brunswick, Maine, in 1964 began a 12- year stay. He helped the congregation grow and diversify, reaching out into the community with the social action organizations that meant so much to him: a suicide prevention program, the Bath Brunswick food coop, an Amnesty International group. Often the head of the parade down Maine Street, he protested the wars and racial injustices of the era.
Leaving Brunswick in 1979, he went to New Bedford, Massachusetts, to be assistant minister and religious education director. Following this, he served the church in Billerica, Massachusetts, from which he retired in 1983 as Minister Emeritus.
Returning to Maine, Maurice took a course in house design and construction at the Shelter Institute in Bath to prepare himself to build the only house he ever owned, in West Newfield. The construction was an adventure he never tired of retelling, and he dearly loved his home. There he remained for the rest of his life.
During the years from 1998-2000, he ministered part time to the Sanford Unitarian Universalist Church, which granted him the honor of Minister Emeritus. Throughout his retirement he continued his life work, lending support to Peace Action Maine, Amnesty International, Native American advocacy, and AARP. Gardening and letter writing and the Red Sox were the relaxing pursuits of this long happy retirement. He was deeply at peace with himself.
The mainstay of his ministry was social action. His politics were as liberal as his theology, and ethics for him were situational. As his friends attest, his was a giving and tolerant spirit, warm and witty, yet probing and perceptive. During those years in Brunswick if one wanted access to help or services that were hard to come by, Maurice was considered to be the one with the cosmic connection. He worked with those who back then were not well served by the system. Up until the day of his death he was aware that they are still with us, and they were in his thoughts.
Maurice is survived by his loving close friend of 40 years Martha Gottlieb; his brother Lawrence Cobb of Shelburne, Vermont; nieces Llynda Bigalow of Shelburne, Vermont and Susan Engle of Martinsburg, West Virginia; nephew Richard Cobb of Waterville, Vermont; nine great nieces and nephews; several great-great nephews; and a host of longtime friends.
Notes may be sent to: Martha Gottlieb, 93 Head Tide Road, Whitefield, ME 04353; Maurice’s brother Lawrence Cobb or niece Llynda Bigalow, both at 77 Cedar Ridge Drive, Shelburne, VT 05482.
A memorial service will be held in Sanford, Maine, at the Sanford Unitarian Universalist Church on Oct. 24, 2015, at 2 p.m. In lieu of flowers, consider donations to the charity of your choosing.
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